Tag: friendship

Posted in Books, Reviews

Book Review – Flirty Little Secret (Jessica Lepe)

Posted on by Katie Night

Hey Dearies!

I have been on a “trying to read more this year than I did last year kick”. I also have a closet full of books that I’m trying to get through as well, however, I didn’t have this particular book just sitting on my shelf.

I’ll admit I was trying NOT to buy any more books because I’m honestly running out of room and when I saw this one and read what it was about, I was honestly curious to see how it turned out. Most of the time I would just buy the book and then it sits on my shelf because I forget about it, but I was determined to read this one.

Not to mention, this was the first book that has been published by this author, Jessica Lepe, which I never get a chance to find an authors very first published works, I never get THAT lucky.

So, the book is about Lucy, a guidance consulter at a high school who also as an online presents as @TheMissGuidedCounselor on Instagram where she gives out the best advice for her followers that no one really knows who she is. She also struggles with a lot of mental health. Which I can say I related to her so much in this book.

Then, you have Fletcher, who is a teacher who transferred to the same high school Lucy works. Little does he know that he has been also talking to Lucy on Instagram through his online present as @BravesGuy93. Fletcher also has his table of family issues that Lucy has been helping him out with.

Anyway, they have such an awkward cute meet, which I’m not going to spoil any details with that because its just hilarious and I honestly would act like Lucy if that ever did happen to me.

Also, I forgot to mention that the book is different chapters of both Lucy perspective and Fletchers perspective. Which I honestly quite enjoyed because a lot of books that I’ve read, its always based off of one persons perspective, but it was so interested to read both sides.

I don’t want to give out too many details as I think this book would be a great read for anyone who is a teen/young adult. The reason why I would recommend this to that age group is that I think it would benefit a lot to actually read what a modern romance is nowadays, especially if there is also mental health in the mix to all that.

I think a lot of people nowadays don’t want to work on relationships and would rather skip to another new person versus sitting down and working on the problems they have if they truly loved each other. I think this book does an amazing job talking about how mental health can affect you when being in a relationship when you aren’t at 100%.

One of the scenes in the book that I am referring to is the scene where Lucy and Fletcher have their very first date. When Fletcher comes to pick up Lucy, he finds he so overwhelmed with a list of stuff she has been delaying doing because of her mental health and instead of just leaving her to deal with them herself, he cancels the dinner plans and takes her around help her get the stuff she needs done, done.

In my eyes, that not only shows that Fletcher is willing to help Lucy in need, but it shows that he wants to be with her through the good, bad, and the ugly times. If I were Lucy, I would snatch that man up for myself since there aren’t many men that would do that, its slim pickings that will.

Overall, I really liked the book and found that I couldn’t put the book down, especially when the author was going back from Lucy to Fletcher, I wanted to know what happened next. Honestly, I wouldn’t be mad if there was a sequel, but I think how the book ended, it ended in a perfect way there wouldn’t need to be a sequel.

Honestly, I will be following this author because I loved her writing style and I related to Lucy in so many ways, which can be hard to do when sometimes authors want to give us the fairy tale hope of happily ever after, but life isn’t like that and I think Flirty Little Secret showed the side that we really don’t see with relationships nowadays.

Let me know in the comments if you have also gotten a chance to read this or if its on your book list to check out!

Posted in Books, Reviews

Book Review – Ever After (Laurel-Leaf Books)

Posted on by Katie Night

Hey Dearies! Back with another book review for you all! So, this one I never thought this was really a book, but it is and you can find it on Amazon.

Ever After is a motion picture that Drew Barrymore stars in as the main character, Danielle. This movie is one of my all-time favorite version of a Cinderella story, next to Hillary Duffs more modern version in A Cinderella Story.

The ‘Cinderella’ story has been told in many different ways in, by different writers and in different genres. In my opinion, ‘Cinderella’s story is one of the easiest recreations that any writer can do, but I’m always curious to see what writers come up with and try to do.

The same goes for any other fairy tale story, but I think this version is the best because not only is it in the perfect timeline and location to do it.

The theme of where this Cinderella story is set more like how the original Cinderella story started. Danielle lives with her father, her more died in childbirth and her father raises her the best he can. Of course, when she is 8, he re-marries Baroness Rodmilla of Ghent, otherwise known as her evil stepmother, and has two daughters of her own.

However, the reason why Rodmilla marries Danielle’s father is to get further up the line, or into the castle, basically wanting to live the life of riches. So, she really doesn’t care about Danielle, anyway, makes Danielle a ‘slave’ when her father dies.

I will say, Danielle puts up with a bunch of crap as a servant, but how she meets Prince Henry is even funnier than how the other versions. She ends up meeting him and throws apples at him thinking that he is stealing their horse.

The entire book is an exact play-by-play of the movie, which made me feel like I was just reading the movie and I ended up finishing it in a day. So, instead of watching the movie, you can read it, however, depending on how fast you read, it could take a day, perfect for passing the time.

There are only a few slight things that weren’t in the movie, but even if it wasn’t, it doesn’t change the way the book is, instead, I feel like it gives more of a backstory to some of the parts that are ‘rushed’ when created into a movie, or they were parts that they didn’t put into the movie.

Overall, this is an amazing book, even though it is literally the movie script, but in a book form and since I don’t own the movie, it’s not a bad way to pass the time. Perfect for a rainy or snowy day when you can’t go anywhere and want to snuggle up to a good book.

I also think that it would be a great bedtime story or a book that you could read to your kids before bed, you won’t finish it all before bed, but you could finish a chapter a night before bed no problem.

So, since I’ve reviewed the book, later in this month, I will be reviewing the movie because you know that’s what makes sense to do, right?

What do you think about the book? Were you as shocked as I to find out that there was a book to the movie? Let me know in the comments below.

 

 

Posted in Writing Works

The Scars He Left Behind (Friday’s Short Stories)

Posted on by Katie Night

‘Hey, Dearies! So, this is the first, of many, short stories that I’ll be posting every Friday. I’ll be posting the writing prompt or idea from where I got it from, and then you’ll get to read my version of the story. These are all fiction, nothing is real unless said otherwise. These are something fun to do and if you want to comment or send me a version of your story, from the prompt, I’ll be happy to read it and possibly post it on my blog, if you would like!’ 

Tell the story of a scar, whether a physical scar or emotional one. To be a writer, said Stephen King, “The only requirement is the ability to remember every scar.”

The Scars He Left Behind

Looking up from the stars, Lela was waiting for something to catch her eye, whether it be a shooting star or the moon turning full as it looked down upon her. The full moon gave

Lela a sense of power, made her feel safe.

She usually did this every night, feeling the hot summer day finally cool off and letting the dark sky raise over the town like a blanket, hiding us underneath it. It was her favorite time of day.

Until now.

Things have changed for her, she had a busy plate, going into her 3rd year of high school. She wasn’t a straight-A student but did enough work to make sure she passed her classes. This year was different, not only had she given up on love, but she found it again.

Or so she thought.

It started out so simple, she thought, but how wrong was she. It started with a random message on a chat room, she was on there talking to one of her two best friends about the excitement that happened during lunch, a fight broke out and they got to witness it first hand.

It was the most exciting thing that had ever happened to them on that day, but for Lela, it was him.

The message from him popped up on her screen, she didn’t know what to do, nor react. She never had a guy take interest in her since middle school, but even then, she still didn’t know what to say, nor how to respond.

‘Can you help me meet Sarah? She seemed to log off.’

Little did Lela know that would be the start of a new chapter for her, not her friend Sarah.

‘Can’t you ask her yourself?’

Lela snapped back, thinking that this man wouldn’t want any interest in her. Why would they?

‘Sadly, I can’t seem to find her. I was supposed to meet her at the library, but I can’t seem to find her?’

Lela laughed at the message. She remembered Sarah was meeting up with her mystery guy today, but with midterms just about to start, she ended up setting up her date at the library with him.

Lela decided to stay home since she had to make sure to be home for her younger brother.

‘Didn’t you use her profile picture?’

Lela tried to explain, as much as she didn’t want to continue the conversation, she felt that she had to at least help him. Although, she chuckled at the fact that he didn’t have much common sense and wondered what Sarah saw in him.

She decided to do some snooping of her own and clicked on his profile picture. He looked semi-cute, or average. He wasn’t fat, nor was he too skinny. His dark hair complemented his eyes. As she kept looking, it seems that she found that they had more in common than she thought.

Lela thought he was kinda cute, but when she saw the year of his birth, she froze. Not only was Sarah talking to a much older guy, but a guy that would be legally called a man.

Chills went down Lela’s back as the conversation continued. Not only had it changed from helping him find Sarah, but his interest in her instead.

That was only the beginning.

After that same conversation, things changed. Lela and this man got closer and not even the 3rd day of talking, they finally met. To her mother’s disgrace, she didn’t want to see her 15-year-old daughter with someone who was 5 years older but tried her best to fight it.

She didn’t know what else to do, she banned her from seeing him, but that just made Lela want to be with him much more. The more the mother forbid it, the more she snuck around to see him.

It had been a week together for Lela and him, but in that week she lost so much. She didn’t know how it happened, it just did. His tongue mouthed words that made her jump into his bed. Making it seem that her virginity was something he wanted to take from her. Claim in with the others he took before hers, add it to his collection.

Once it was gone, she never got it back. The worst part is what came after that.

For months, she tried to build a so-called relationship with him, but he didn’t seem invested in her. Instead, his games came before her, the only time he wanted her was when he needed to be pleasured by her.

The times she did nor didn’t, he still went off and found another woman to laid in his bed. Forgive and forget, she thought over and over, the many times that he cheated. She didn’t know what else to do.

The scar.

He left two on that day in June. The heat was too hot to do much, but he still managed to leave a scar on her shoulder. She wanted to spend time with him, wanted to be apart of that world he was so attached too, but instead cut her left shoulder, and left her there, thinking she was wrong.

The second scar ended right in heart, making it seem like she might never find love again. Making it be more impossible or out of reach, just like the stars are from our grasp.

Once Lela had enough, she ended it, walking away from the first relationship she could ever call her own. She always looks down at that scar, to remind her that she is stronger than those dark times from where she got it from.

Looking back at the stars once more, she took a deep breath and smiled. Getting up from the patch of grass she was laying on and standing up tall, ready to walk into her next chapter, even with the scar he gave her.

Let me know in the comments of what you thought about this short story! These will be posted every Friday and if you have a prompt or idea that you would like me to try out, let me know in the comments! 

Posted in Mom Talk

Mom Talk: Why I Decided To Fix An Old Friendship

Posted on by Katie Night

Image result for best friend quotes

So, if you have been reading or following my blog since April of this year, I talked about how I had to get rid of one of my best friends because it was too much unwanted drama and stress. I didn’t fix that relationship, believe me, it’s not worth fixing, to me.

I’m talking about another relationship that I destroyed back in my senior year of high school. I can’t really remember why I got rid of her as a friend. I believe it was because I thought she was more drama, but I don’t have a set reason on why I did what I did.

I’ve known her since the 10th grade, but we really connected and became best friends in 11th grade. We had many fights, but always fixed them as soon as possible. When senior year was coming to an end, I ended the friendship. Maybe because I didn’t think I would see her as much? Maybe I wanted to end the pain of losing her as a friend?

The only thing I can think of is that I was very immature and everyone in high school can be immature. What really made me look back and realized all the stupid shit I did and all the people I pushed out of my life, was when I lost my son.

When you go through something as difficult and it changes you. You think of things differently, you rethink all your actions, and you become more mature after going through something as difficult as death or anything.

After my son died, I deleted my old Facebook and created a new one a few months after, I wanted time away from social media. Well, in the past couple weeks, I saw her profile pop up on my suggestions list for friends. I debated on whether on messaging her or not, just because on how I ended things so quickly and without reason.

I’ll be honest, when I finally got the courage to message her, I literally had it all wrote out on my phone, planning on what I was gonna say to her. Deep down, I knew that I should at least be an adult and say sorry for all the crap I caused. All I thought she would do is have my ass handed to me, which I totally deserved, but I was shocked.

I think she was shocked too when I sent that message, but I’m glad I did. She forgave me, something I didn’t think that would happen, but she did. It shows how much we have both grown up in the past almost 3 years.

We ended up telling each other everything we have done within the past 3 years. We even talked about our high school days. I was shocked to find out that she had been thinking about me too, wondering why I got rid of her as a friend.

If I looked back at the only really close friendships I had, the one I had with her, was probably the best because we clicked a lot better that I did with my other ex best friend. The ex best friend, we had a few things in common, but I feel I was more issues and drama because she wanted to be center of attention.

I’m glad I took the shot to fix a broken friendship that I ruined. It felt good to know that after 3 years, we clicked back, just like that. Even now, that I have kids, she still would’ve stayed if I just kept her in my life, but the past is in the past. I’m going to try my best to, hopefully, keep this friendship for many more years and years to come.

Posted in Mom Talk

How To Deal With Unwanted Advice (Mom Talk)

Posted on by Katie Night

Once you find out your expecting your first child, its an amazing feeling! Your excited to experience being pregnant and feeling your child grow to giving birth and watching them grow. However, the moment you get pregnant, the unwanted advise will start to kick in.

Some people are very genuine, but there are others that will pull the whole, “When I was pregnant,” or “I raise my kids this way.”  It can be very overwhelming and it does make you very cautious about how you will raise your kids because you’ll feel like you need to raise your kids the way they are telling you.

Best part, you don’t NEED to take their advise.

I would nod and thank them anyway. I was always raised to be kind and respectful to my elders or anyone in general. I would say usually, “Thank you for the advise, I’ll keep that in mind.” Saying something as simple as that is sweet and perfect to use.

As a mom, you will get told by everyone how to care for your child. From your family to doctors to strangers. Even before the baby’s born, you will be told how to even take care of yourself.

What’s important is what’s best for YOU. If you aren’t sure about something, whether when you are pregnant or kids, ask your provider, they would know what is best. Of course you can always go to your mom, but if you really are unsure, going to a professional would be the best advise that you can get.

When I was first pregnant with my son, I wasn’t as vocal as I wanted to be. It was all new, exciting, and I was scared shitless. I was worrying about all the wrong things that could happen with the pregnancy, especially with it being my first. I was even more overwhelmed when I found out my son was going to have a heart condition.

Even when they knew about his heart condition, I still got the unwanted advise. I don’t think many people understood that with his heart condition, it was all together going to be a different situation. I just kept to myself and thanked them anyway since I was more worried about if my son was going to make it.

My daughter, it was completely different. I put my foot down to a lot of stuff. I’m still trying to make sure that peoples advice doesn’t change the way I want to raise my kids. Plus, we as moms, get judged on everything.

With my more recent daughter, I did get some advise, but honestly I did take most of it in consideration since there has been a huge gap between my oldest daughter, to my youngest and there had been a lot of changes since she was little.

To me, I will take the advice into consideration, but if it’s something that I, as a parent, will not do to parent my child, then I speak up. Sometimes, I can’t speak up to others about this because I’m afraid of hurting their feelings, but I have learned that when it comes to you parenting your kids, the only feeling that matters is your kids and yours.

There are three ways you can handle unwanted advise:

  1. Ignoring  it – This is what I usually do, if a stranger were to approach me with unwanted advise. I usually will nod my head. Sometimes, I do it with family, its easier to do, if you don’t want to make a big deal out or you know it will turn into a giant fight, this would be your best go to.
  2. Speaking up, in a polite way – If you are a person that voices your opinion, but don’t want to offend anyone. This would be more towards close friends, maybe family. Telling them in a polite way, will make it seem not as harsh as bluntly coming out and telling them what is what.
  3. Bluntly telling them straight up – I only go this far, if I’m frustrated. If I have had a bad day and didn’t have any coffee, I snap. I usually will only snap at family, because they have been in my shoes. Plus they understand that they would rather me snap at them versus my kids.

There is one thing that we always need to keep in mind. How we parent our kids, may not be the same as other, but we should respect how others parent. The world we live in now, there are too many people judging before they know the full story, but when it comes to advise, we need to handle it as we feel comfortable.